I found something on the net today that got me excited - Michael Biehn's back in a new sci-fi film. This is excellent news. Mr Biehn has got serious sci-fi cred but never really seems to get the cool points he deserves for some reason. Seriously - his Sci-fi CV is almost as good as Harrison Ford's. Of all the film characters that I ever wanted to be when I was growing up, Hicks is far and away the number one. He's is just the man. He's the guy that gets to teach Ripley how to use a Pulse Rifle. Double-sweet.

He almost didn't get to play the role in Aliens as Hicks was originally to be played by James Remar. They re-cast after they had started filming and two shots of him seen from behind actually remained in the theatrical release. I think he made quite a good Hicks but at the end of the day there's only one Biehn. You'll recognise him more recently playing Harry Morgan in Dexter.

I know the Abyss gets a bit of stick but it's got the Bienster putting in a great turn as the mental Navy Seal Lt. Hiram Coffee who goes nuts and decides to start taking his nuclear warhead to bed with him in case he sees a ghost. Wish Bill Paxton and Robert Patrick had played the other Seals.

And of course, Kyle Reese in the original Terminator. Nobody could have played this role better than Michael Biehn.

I like the way he got paid more for using his picture on the computer-readout screen of Alien 3 than he did for starring in Aliens.

Besides these performances, he's also in a great old 1990 film called "Timebomb" starring himself and Patsy Kensit. And Tracey Scroggins. Who was brilliant. If you've not seen this old flick, Michael Biehn plays a sleeper agent that accidentally gets activated and has some badass government types trying to kill him whilst he discovers he's rock hard and has to go on the run with all his cool new survival skills. Pasty Kensit is his square therapist that wears cardigans and becasue she knows his secret they're out to get her too. So Michael Biehn has to jump over cars, set fire to hotel rooms and have sex with her whilst a big machine pushes a lot of needles in his face. It's quite good.